Teachers Inspire Future Teachers
February 03, 2010
What is the impact of a teacher?
How far does it extend?
How many students do we positively affect?
We can't accurately answer this. Teachers are told we make a difference, and in our hearts we know we change lives. Yet, it's hard to point to hard data that really captures the full extent of our impact. Rather, we see glimpses of our impact: students coming in to thank us, or an email noting how we changed his or her life. When evidence of our impact bubbles to the surface, it is powerful and refreshing, refueling our passion to teach and make a difference.
I read my high school students' teacher belief statements this weekend and I had to share what I found. I assigned this to my students enrolled in our school's teacher academy " a program that encourages students to enter into teaching. I was struck by how many of my students were going into teaching because of one teacher's impact: emotionally, intellectually, or inspirational.
Here are 3 excerpts:
"There are a lot of reasons I chose to teach, but the most significant one was this teacher I had during 7th grade " Mr. B. He challenged us to learn at our full potential even though sometimes we learned difficult concepts."
"-
"It all started when I was in third grade, my teacher, Mrs. K showed us that education could be fun! She showed me a lot of individual attention that I hadn't received before. I could say I loved my teacher. As I look back on what she did and how she went about it, I think about myself, how I act, and how I care about people like she did.
"-
One day in Language Arts class, Ms. B cried over a student that died due to a disease, and seeing that changed me perspective about teachers; teachers actually cared about students. I thought since they cared so much and so do I about other people, that maybe teaching could become my career choice.
"-
I will scan the students' belief statements and email them to the students' former teachers with a simple note that reads, "You make a difference."
______________________________
Eric Hougan started his career in business and eventually did a career change into education, merging his two passions: business and teaching. It was during this transition, while a preservice and student teacher, that Eric realized the significant gap of resources and support for student teachers. Ever since, Eric has worked extremely hard collecting tips, strategies, and resources to address the sometimes mystifying process of becoming a teacher, addressing such topics as certification, and ways to develop a beneficial relationship with one's cooperating teacher and university supervisor. Eric hopes this on-line community will address the hiring process by offering interviewing techniques and posting potential teacher interview questions. Overall, the purpose of this website is to provide a supportive network with wonderful resources for individuals pursuing a career in education.
Hougan completed his Master of Arts in Teaching from National-Louis University in Chicago, IL. Currently, he is a secondary-level teacher in Washington. Eric is involved in many school improvement initiatives and is a club adviser for Future Business Leaders of America. Seeking further professional development, Eric completed his National Board for Professional Teaching Standards. In the community, Eric is a Board Officer for the King County Bar Association's Future of the Law Institute. Eric is also an author, recently writing Road to Teaching: A Guide to Teacher Training, Student Teaching, and Finding a Job. For his school and community efforts, Eric was recently recognized as a 2008-9 Phi Delta Kappa (PDK) Emerging Leader.
Read more from Eric at his blog on Road to Teaching.
How far does it extend?
How many students do we positively affect?
We can't accurately answer this. Teachers are told we make a difference, and in our hearts we know we change lives. Yet, it's hard to point to hard data that really captures the full extent of our impact. Rather, we see glimpses of our impact: students coming in to thank us, or an email noting how we changed his or her life. When evidence of our impact bubbles to the surface, it is powerful and refreshing, refueling our passion to teach and make a difference.
I read my high school students' teacher belief statements this weekend and I had to share what I found. I assigned this to my students enrolled in our school's teacher academy " a program that encourages students to enter into teaching. I was struck by how many of my students were going into teaching because of one teacher's impact: emotionally, intellectually, or inspirational.
Here are 3 excerpts:
"There are a lot of reasons I chose to teach, but the most significant one was this teacher I had during 7th grade " Mr. B. He challenged us to learn at our full potential even though sometimes we learned difficult concepts."
"-
"It all started when I was in third grade, my teacher, Mrs. K showed us that education could be fun! She showed me a lot of individual attention that I hadn't received before. I could say I loved my teacher. As I look back on what she did and how she went about it, I think about myself, how I act, and how I care about people like she did.
"-
One day in Language Arts class, Ms. B cried over a student that died due to a disease, and seeing that changed me perspective about teachers; teachers actually cared about students. I thought since they cared so much and so do I about other people, that maybe teaching could become my career choice.
"-
I will scan the students' belief statements and email them to the students' former teachers with a simple note that reads, "You make a difference."
______________________________
Eric Hougan started his career in business and eventually did a career change into education, merging his two passions: business and teaching. It was during this transition, while a preservice and student teacher, that Eric realized the significant gap of resources and support for student teachers. Ever since, Eric has worked extremely hard collecting tips, strategies, and resources to address the sometimes mystifying process of becoming a teacher, addressing such topics as certification, and ways to develop a beneficial relationship with one's cooperating teacher and university supervisor. Eric hopes this on-line community will address the hiring process by offering interviewing techniques and posting potential teacher interview questions. Overall, the purpose of this website is to provide a supportive network with wonderful resources for individuals pursuing a career in education.
Hougan completed his Master of Arts in Teaching from National-Louis University in Chicago, IL. Currently, he is a secondary-level teacher in Washington. Eric is involved in many school improvement initiatives and is a club adviser for Future Business Leaders of America. Seeking further professional development, Eric completed his National Board for Professional Teaching Standards. In the community, Eric is a Board Officer for the King County Bar Association's Future of the Law Institute. Eric is also an author, recently writing Road to Teaching: A Guide to Teacher Training, Student Teaching, and Finding a Job. For his school and community efforts, Eric was recently recognized as a 2008-9 Phi Delta Kappa (PDK) Emerging Leader.
Read more from Eric at his blog on Road to Teaching.
